How Did We Get Here?
by itsallinmyhead
Summary: Rosalie, the beautiful daughter of a reverend has been trying to recover from some of her past demons. Emmett's the new boy in town, and quickly notices Rose. Will she be able to get over her past experiences and let him in? Can he help her?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:**** Hey guys, this isn't really a new story. As you've probably realized I haven't updated my story "How Did We Get Here?" in a longtime, honestly, it's because I just wasn't satisfied with where I was taking the story and because of that, I had a serious case of writer's block. This here is a new and improved revamped version of it. Don't worry; it's still the same plot it's just that some of the elements of the story are changed. Yes I do realize that Edward is crushing on Rosalie early in this chapter, but don't worry Emmett and Bella will show up soon, so yes it's cannon pairings starting from the next chapter.**

_**Title: How Did We Get Here?**_

**__****Rating: **Right now it's rated T but that will probably change in the future

**Main Characters: **

Emmett McCarty almost 17 years old.

Rosalie Hale 16 years old.

**Supporting Characters:**

Edward Cullen 16 years old

Isabella Swan 16 years old

Carlisle Cullen 36 years old

Esme Cullen 34 years old

Richard Hale 41 years old

Jasper Whitlock 17 years old (introduced into the story very late)

Alice Brandon 17 years old (introduced into the story very late)

**Synopsis**

Rosalie Hale is guarding a secret that keeps her socially withdrawn from everyone in the town except for her best friend Edward Cullen and his aunt and uncle. What happened to her that made such a beautiful girl so shy and insecure? How does she cope when she realizes that the new kid in town, bad boy Emmett McCarty has his eyes set on her, the innocent daughter of the town's reverend?

**Chapter 1: What a Day!**

**Song for this chapter: **Neon Trees – Animal.

_Edward's Point of View_

The humid and dank atmosphere justified just what the weatherman had predicted; generally cloudy with thunderstorms. This was nothing unusual in the tiny town in Washington that I lived in called, Forks. It rained here more than it rained anywhere else in America, making it officially one of the dreariest and most depressing places to live.

I sighed as I got up from the armchair I was sitting in and set down the control to my X-Box 360. School had only been closed for two days and I was already bored. Videos games were only fun when you had someone to compete with and sadly for me, the only person I wanted to compete with was in church practicing next Sunday's hymns with the choir. I felt a sudden pang in my heart as my thoughts drifted to her, something they seemed to do quite frequently these days – whether I wanted to them to or not. But how could I not think about her, she _was_ my best friend after all.

She was extremely witty, and had an excellent sense of humour, she was definitely the only person I knew who wouldn't stand for half the shit I did. _She always set me straight when I was getting out of line. _But truthfully, the thing about her that I cherished the most was that she never complained whenever I'd spend hours just playing my piano or guitar, she actually appreciated my music. It wasn't rare for her to come up with lyrics for many of my compositions and sing them while I played. God knows I'd give anything to hear her voice all the time, with its sweet intonation comparable to that of chiming bells.

She was everything that I wanted in a girl, yet she was the only one I could not have.

_She's your best friend!_ I mentally chided myself, feeling perfectly horrid for having these feelings towards her.

Rosalie was such a pure and delicate flower. She'd never even had a boyfriend while I was the reputed playboy at our school, Fork's High. I often thought that I shouldn't be blamed for my promiscuous actions; I was a musician, I was rich and I was considered hot! All the girls at school loved me. And if I they weren't complaining about my promiscuity, why should I change? I was born to be Edward Cullen, Casanova extraordinaire. Right?

I honestly didn't want to be like that anymore.

My indiscipline had initially started as a game – a challenge to myself if you will – simply because I was a bored teenager starved for attention from parents who couldn't care less about what I did. The girls quickly filled a void in my heart; I felt no need to be in a steady relationship. These were issues that my aunt Esme had told me stemmed from my estranged relationship with my parents. I felt awful for being the person I'd become, I could literally count on one hand the girls who were in the same grade as me at school that I'd yet to fuck:

Jessica Stanley: who's just gross since she's a bigger slut than even me!

Lauren Mallory: who's a reputed clinger, something I definitely didn't want.

Rachel Swift: who has awful personal hygiene – enough said!

Angela Webber: a total prude! She even wore a purity ring.

Rosalie Hale: my angel, who's just too pure to be tainted by someone as unworthy as me.

The interesting thing was how I'd never noticed her before – I mean surely I've seen her and recognized her beauty (I'd have to be blind if I didn't). But I'd never really _noticed her_. Like the way her blue eyes shined when she was excited, the cute look she had when she pouted at me, making it impossible for me to resist her wishes, or just the way she'd go the extra mile for me and put an extra effort into everything she did for me. She was such a good friend, but I wanted her to be more than that.

I gazed around the room I was now standing in realizing that I'd somehow made my way to the kitchen during my distracting thought chain. I absentmindedly checked the clock, discerning that I had only to wait about 15 minutes again before 4 o' clock when Rosalie would be finishing up with choir practice and hopefully on her way over to my house.

Opting not to waste my trip to the kitchen, I began to walk over to the fridge to grab a drink only to be interrupted by the ringing of a telephone. It was the landline – the line that only my parents called on whenever they remembered that they had a son in Forks, whom they'd abandoned whilst they traipsed around the world.

"Hello." I spoke into the receiver hoping that this phone call wouldn't end the way all the others I've had with my parents did – in a temper induced reflex reaction that usually made me have to drive all the way to the nearest electronics store in Port Angeles to buy a new phone.

"Edward dear, it's Mummy, how are you? Is everything alright?" I could hear the boredom in her tone of voice and could picture her intently inspecting her perfectly manicured finger nails, for any imperfection, while she spoke to me. _She was so shallow_.

"Hi Mother," I replied consciously making an effort to be cordial. "Everything's fine with me, I got my report card in the mail yesterday."

"Oh really, well that's nice," she replied stiffly, causing my spirits to drop at her lack of interest. I could never understand why she and my father were able to get under my skin like that. It's not like if we ever had a good relationship, they were never interested in me, much less in what I told them.

"Aren't you going to ask me how I did?" I asked her still trying my best to squeeze as much out of the conversation as I possibly could.

"Well ok Edward, now that you've brought it up, how did you do?"

"I got an A minus overall and I topped my biology class." I replied.

"Oh well that's good, I never realized that you were good at biology."

I wanted to reply "What the fuck do you mean? I've been acing the class since I started high school." But instead I suppressed my annoyance and said, "Well yes, it's my favourite subject so I really put a lot of effort into it."

"Edward?" she said my name questioningly and I realized that there was going to be a change in the trend of the conversation, hopefully a change for the good.

"Yes Mother?"

"Do you have any plans for the summer yet?"

"No not really, just the usual; work on my music, hang out with Rosalie, maybe go down to the beach in La Push – I haven't planned anything official yet." I replied amazed at her sudden interest in what I was planning to do with my time.

"Well, your father and I were thinking that – well only if you'd like to – that you can join us this summer in Monaco."

"Really? You want to see me!" I replied excitedly, mentally slapping myself for sounding so immature in my response.

"Yes, if you'd like to. You can book a ticket for the next flight out and we'll meet you at the airport. We haven't seen you in a long time, son." she replied, her usual cold voice taking on a gentler tone.

"Umm sure." I replied without thinking twice. "I'll book the ticket and email you the flight details." I couldn't believe that they actually wanted to see me. _Me! _They'd never even come to visit me on my birthday before now and they suddenly wanted to spend a whole summer with me.

"Ok good! Well I'll see you soon, I have to go now, son."

"Ok Mother, goodbye." And with the most stupid grin on my face, I hung up the phone before excitedly running up the stairs where my macbook was, to book my flight.

"Uncle Carlisle?" I said into the phone. I opted to call him for a variety of reasons but only three of them were really important. Firstly, I considered him and his wife to me my parents since they'd been through more with me than my real parents. Secondly, because even though my Aunt Esme was easier to talk to, I knew that Uncle Carlisle wouldn't try to psycho- analyze me like she would. And thirdly, I just needed to let him know that I now had plans for the summer.

"Ed! What's up?"

"Guess who called today and put a smile on my face." I told him happily.

"Uh… Rose?" he guessed. That was probably the obvious thing to guess on a normal day.

"No, believe it or not my mother called. She and my dad want to see me this summer, so they invited me to come and spent the rest of my school break with them."

"Well – uh – really?" he responded, clearly caught off guard with my news. "How come the sudden change of heart?"

"I don't know, I think she mentioned something about them not seeing me in a longtime, but honestly Uncle Carlisle, I don't care! I'm just really happy."

"I'm very happy for you too, I hope everything goes well. When's your flight?"

"Uh… tomorrow at 4:20pm." I said, reading the information off of the screen on my macbook.

"Well great, I'll tell your aunt and we'll carry you to the airport and see you off."

"No it's ok; you don't have to do that." I replied quickly.

"Son, it's alright, you know your aunt and I don't mind doing this for you."

"No it's not that, it's just that, I was hoping that Rose would do it, though I haven't asked her yet." I replied although I said the last part mostly to myself.

"Ok no problem, lover boy. I take it that you've already spoken to her, you know about what you and I talked about last week." I smiled as I thought of it; it was when I told him how I _really_ felt about her.

"No not yet." I replied softly.

"What are you waiting for, boy? She's a beautiful girl; someone else is going to steal her away if you wait too long." He warned me.

"I know; I think that – " I sighed as I thought of the magnitude of what I was going to utter. " I'll tell her before I go away, don't worry. I've just been postponing it because I'm afraid, she'll hate me."

"Oh please Edward, that's the stupidest thing I've ever heard you say. I'll admit that Rose can be very callous and standoffish when she feels threatened – and it's all with good reason when we think about her past – but Ed, you're her best friend. You're probably the only guy she really trusts, she could never hate you not even if she tried."

"You think so?"

"I know so, son. Now get on the phone with her and talk to her before it's too late." I could picture the playful smile on his face; he was nothing like my father, it was amazing that they were brothers. "Oh actually Ed, I just remembered, your aunt told me that she had an appointment with Rose today. Maybe you should wait until she calls you, I can't remember if Esme told me what time they'd be finished."

"Ok no problem. Thanks for the talk. I have to go; I'll talk to you soon." I said as I quickly hung up the phone, excited that my pending talk with Rose had once again been postponed.

As it turned out neither of us needed to make a phone call, at exactly eight o'clock the doorbell rang and I opened the door to find a very tired looking Rosalie standing there with her overnight bag and another bag that looked very heavy.

"Rose? What are you doing here?" I asked her as I took the heavier bag she was holding, out of her arms.

She stifled a yawn before walking into the house saying, "Well I was hoping that my dad would be home early, so I made dinner. But he said he's staying back late at the church tonight, so now I have a ton of food that I made and no one to eat it with." She replied. I shut the door behind her before following her into the kitchen. I could tell that she was angry.

"Hey." I said as I gently turned her face toward me once we'd set the bags down on the counter in my kitchen. She was still upset, and I wasn't exactly sure why, "What's wrong?"

"I just – I'm so fucking tired of this Edward! He's always so busy." she blurted loudly. I was taken aback by her outburst, not because she was upset but because she actually cursed! Something I'd never ever heard her do in the nine years that we'd been friends.

"Rose, you can't be mad at your father because he's doing his job. You and I both know that a pastor never really gets to take a break from his work." I reasoned, although I quickly regretted saying those words once I'd noticed the way she looked at me. Rosalie's short temper wasn't one of her nicest traits. What was the saying? Hell has no fury like a woman scorned…

"You're such a hypocrite Edward! Everyday you're always complaining to me about how you wished your parents would spend less time away from home when they're working but you're giving me crap because I think that my dad should just come home in time to have dinner with me at least once?" she was pacing now, her hands balled in to fists and her blue eyes were narrowed into small slits as she glared at me. "Besides he isn't doing his job properly Edward! I'm his daughter, part of his job is supposed to involve being a good father to me! I'm important too Edward!" she continued her usually pleasant voice now clipped and harsh.

"You're right Rose, I'm sorry." I had to apologize; everything she said about her dad was true. He'd been neglecting and avoiding Rose since the day her mother died when she was six. His negligence was exactly why the asshole that haunted her dreams was able to hurt her, making her the scared shy girl that she was sometimes. She was right, he was a shitty dad.

Thankfully her mood was somewhat placated by my apology.

"I shouldn't have yelled at you, I was wrong to do that." She apologized.

"No need to say sorry Ro, you're upset. Friends are here to help each other, right?" I asked her smiling feeling my heart skip a beat when she smiled back at me. "What made you so mad though, you've never let your dad upset you this much."

"I know, it's just I'm so tired of this Edward. I'm the perfect child to him I get perfect grades; I go to church, even though I hate it! He asked me to go greet the new elderly man that moved into town today, Mr. McCarty, and I did it, because I'm such a good kid, but I hate him Edward! He should've just left me in the orphanage like Jasper!"

"You know you don't mean that, Rosalie." I chided, she always said things that she didn't mean when she was angry, and her staying with her cousin Jasper in an orphanage was definitely something I was certain that she did not want.

"It's how it happened; maybe that's why I'm so mad at him. I spoke to him this morning before he left home. I said, 'Daddy, I'm thinking about making a special dinner tonight so that we can eat together,' since we haven't done that in a longtime." She explained. "He said 'sure thing I'll be there, honey.' So I went to choir practice, then I went to see Esme, then I went for a jog. I was dog tired by the time I got home, but I still went into the kitchen to cook for him because I told him I'd do it." She continued. "Only to get a phone call from him saying that he's not going to be able to make it because he has to finish working on the sermon for this Sunday. Today's Monday Edward! He has all week!" she said, frustrated.

I quickly moved closer to her and pulled her into a hug, the lovely smell of her watermelon scented shampoo almost overriding all of my senses. "You shouldn't let him get to you like this I know it hurts, but Ro, you're too much of a nice person to take him on." I pulled away from her and smiled as I looked down to her face. She didn't reciprocate; instead, she just walked over to the counter where we'd rested the bag of food that she'd brought with her.

"Are you hungry?" she asked with her back still facing me.

"That depends," I said as I walked next to her leaning onto the counter so that I could see her face.

"On what?"

"On if you're still angry." I told her smiling as she finally looked at me.

"I could never stay angry once you're around, Ed." She said returning my smile.

I contentedly stood there watching as she neatly stacked all of the bowls that she'd brought the food in, she was always neat, and I actually think she has OCD.

"So you mentioned something about a new neighbor." I said in an attempt to make small talk.

"Uh huh." She replied as she walked over to the drawer that held the cutlery we'd need for everything. "His name is William McCarty. He's the nicest old guy you'd ever meet. He has a son around our age, but he had some stuff to do back in their hometown before he came here so he's coming sometime later this week. I'm going over to Mr. McCarty's house tomorrow to assist him with some stuff. Maybe I should bake him something." She said thoughtfully, she absolutely loved cooking.

"Well I think it's nice that you've made a new friend." I told her, I instantly felt guilty at leaving her for a whole two months; she didn't really talk to anyone other than me and my family.

She smiled in response before saying, "I made Asian food; stir-fried vegetables, Singapore noodles and Chinese styled chicken. The desert isn't Asian though because I couldn't think of an authentic Asian desert so I just made Boston cream pie." She told me as she gestured to the individual dishes.

_**Sometime later...**_

Wow Rosalie, you really outdid yourself with this food tonight; everything was delicious." I told her once I'd finished up my meal.

"Good. I'm glad you liked it." She smiled as she began dishing out her third helping of food. She really was something; she looked like angel but ate like a man.

"Geez Rose, you're eating more food!" I playfully teased her as she began eating what she'd just dished out.

"Oh shut up!" she laughed. "I love to eat"

"I know but I'm trying to figure out where it all goes I can't understand how you're still so slim."

"Oh please, you make it sound like if I'm genetically blessed or something, you know how much I work out!"

"And it's a good thing too, or you might have to look for a future career in sumo-wrestling." I joked, happy that she was no longer in a foul mood.

Once she'd finally finished eating, we both set to work clearing the table.

"Don't even think about it, Mrs. Joseph is coming in the morning." I told her when she'd attempted to begin doing the dishes.

"Alright rich boy, but do we really need to leave all of this mess here for her to clean up?" Rose replied she was pretending to feel sorry for Mrs. Joseph. However, I knew that in reality she was just too much of a neat freak to leave dirty dishes.

"Rose, it's her job to clean up my mess, that's what my parents are paying her for." I reasoned.

"You know what, I give up. I realize that you are not going to let this go." She smiled as she dried her hands and walked over to the island counter which she lifted herself onto.

"I'm spending the night." She told me.

"I know." I replied. It was no surprise; she'd usually sleep over when her dad was going to be home late. Rose was too afraid to stay by herself – not that I blamed her given the things she'd been through…

"You want to hear something interesting?" I asked her with my trademark crocked grin on my face. She nodded, so I quickly relayed the conversation between my mother and me.

"So did you start packing yet?" she asked excitedly; she looked so beautiful then. I took the time to fully appraise her beauty; the way her golden hair fell in waves all the way down her back and the way she still managed to look like a goddess in her old washed out t-shirt and faded jeans.

"Earth to Edward." She called as she playfully ruffled my hair. Apparently I was too busy checking her out to answer her question.

"No, I haven't started yet."

"Why not?" she asked quietly as she slipped down from the countertop where she was perched making her now, come to stand directly in front of me. She looked up at me through her eyelashes. I nervously gulped at our nearness before replying.

I'll do it in the morning. I really don't care to pack, whatever I forget here I'll just replace when I get to France."

"Rich boy." She mumbled with a smile on her face before looking down at her pair of Chuck Taylor's and shaking her head in disagreement.

Something about the calm in this moment told me that now was the perfect time to confess my feelings. I wasn't nervous anymore; she'd set me at ease.

"Hey Rose?"

"Yeah?" she looked at me questioningly, her baby blues seemed to see inside my soul.

"I like you." There. I said it, quick and easy.

"Of course you like me Edward, we're friends." She replied chuckling.

Shit! I obviously wasn't clear enough.

"No Rose." I said, running my hand through my hair before finally talking her small hands into mine. "I mean I _like you_, like you. More than _just_ friends, it sort of just dawned on me the other day. I wanted to tell you 'because I thought maybe… maybe there's a chance that you like me back." I told her never breaking my gaze from her eyes.

Her eyes held no expression as she started to reply, "Ed I don't know what to say – "

I cut her off, I didn't want to pressure her, "It's ok Rose, I understand that you don't feel the same way, I'm sorry I brought it up."

"Let me finish Edward." She said a small smile playing on her lips. "I can't say I feel exactly the same way, because I'd be lying. But I've been thinking a lot lately about relationships and crushes, and I would like to experience that. I think it'll help me get better. Basically what I'm trying to say Edward, is that you're the only guy that I trust maybe I could learn to like you more than just a friend. I know that you'd never treat me the way you treated those girls at school – which I still haven't forgiven you for by the way."

"Rose, I promise that I would never treat you like those other girls, you're too special." I said as I hugged her reveling in the feel of her body against mine, the contrast of her softness against my hard muscle."

"I just wish, you told me earlier than one day before you leave for a two month long vacation."

"I know my timing sucks, but I promise Rose, when I come back I'll make you feel like the most important and special girl in the world." I told her as I once again got lost gazing into her eyes, which was broken when she yawned.

"You want to go to bed?" I asked her as I tucked some of her stray strands of hair behind her ear, to which she nodded in reply.

"Alright Ro, sweet dreams." I said as I leaned down and placed a chaste kiss on her cheeks. She just walked out of the kitchen waving bashfully at me before disappearing out of my line of sight.

I stood there feeling extremely satisfied with myself; I'd finally gotten the two things I wanted the most in life. Some time with my parents and Rosalie Hale – the latter however was the only thing that kept parading through my dreams when I went to bed that night.

What a day.

_To be continued..._

**Ok Guys so there's chapter one, hope you like it please leave me some love if you do.**

**Up next in Chapter Two: **

**Chapter Title: The Good Samaritan**

**Rose questions her "crush" on Edward, and meets a very smooth talking, dimpled cheek boy at the airport.**


	2. The Good Samaritan

**A/N: Hey thanks thank you for your reviews! And special thanks to morgan, my first reviewer who I was unable to reply to. Thanks also for reading the non-canon pairing that I have started with but don't worry, it's about to change… **_**Emmett's Here**_**!**

**Chapter 2: **The Good Samaritan

**Song for this Chapter: **Growing Up- The Maine

**Rosalie's Point of View**

I woke up to a buzzing sound penetrating the night's silence. It took me about 6 seconds to realize that it was the sound of my cell phone vibrating on the nightstand of the guestroom I was in. Who the hell calls at – I looked up at the digital clock – 3:47am?

"Hello?" I answered my voice thick with sleep.

"Oh good, you were asleep." I heard my dad's relived sigh into the phone.

"Of course I was asleep daddy, it's 3 o' clock in the morning!" I whisper shouted into the phone as I sat up in the bed.

"Do not take that tone with me, young lady! I am _actually_ calling for a reason. I had a bad dream about you and Edward, you can't be friends anymore – he's no good for you! I'm coming over right now to pick you up."

"Daddy wait you're not making any sense. You need to slow down you're confusing me… what exactly was your dream about?"

"I dreamt that he hurt you like – well like '_you know who'_." He sighed annunciating his words in his still clear cut English accent. I didn't need for him to elaborate to know exactly who 'you know who' was. I did not however, understand why my father was entertaining these preposterous thoughts about Edward Cullen.

"You are being ridiculous; this is Edward we're talking about. He'd never hurt me, you know that daddy!" I reasoned with my father.

"We were positive that _he'd_ never hurt you too Rosalie, do you remember that?" While that was true, both my dad and I knew quite well that nothing would've happened to me had he been doing his job… being my father.

"That's totally different from this daddy. Edward's different he knows me better than anyone, he helped me get a lot better. He's my best friend for crying out loud!"

"It's not different Rosalie!" he shouted and I could picture that lone vein popping out on his forehead as he exerted himself. "It will _never be different_, he's a man! All men's brains are corrupted by the same desires and thoughts especially when they concern a woman who looks like you!" I rolled my eyes at his chivalry, if you could call it that. He was always overprotective of me yet he was never actually there when I needed the protection, ironically Edward was though.

"You don't have bad thoughts about me dad and you're a man." I counter argued.

"He's a hormonal teenage boy; trust me when I say he doesn't want to be _just friends_ with you. I bet pretty soon he'll be asking you to take your 'friendship' to the next level and be more _than just friends_."

That was like a slap to the face, maybe my dad was right. Edward did after all confess his true feelings toward me last night…

I couldn't believe I'd just thought that, we were best friends since we were eight years old, I was absolutely positive that he'd never hurt me.

"I'm leaving the church now and I am coming to collect you. I'll be there in about ten minutes." He snapped before hanging up the phone.

I hurriedly began gathering the clothing that I'd worn last night and threw them back into my overnight bag before running out of the guest bedroom and down the elaborate marble staircase to the ground floor. I maneuvered into the kitchen and flipped on the light switch to wash last night's dishes so that I could pack up the bowls I'd brought.

I was making every effort to move as quietly as possible until one plate – the last one I'd been washing – slipped out of my soapy hand. It moved with gravity until it hit the floor with a loud 'CRASH', its pieces scattering on the linoleum floor.

I froze then fighting the urge to hit myself and praying that the noise hadn't disturbed Edward. I listened intently to hear if he'd stirred but only the sound of silence greeted my ears.

"Thank goodness," I mumbled as I bent down to pick up the larger pieces of the broken plate. I walked over to the trashcan to dispose of these pieces.

Edward's velvety smooth voice startled me, "You see this is what happens when you don't listen to me, Ro." He scolded, with his signature crooked smile in place. He walked over to the other side of the room and picked up the broom and dustpan while I looked at him stupidly like a deer caught it the headlights.

"I'm sorry I woke you."

"It's no problem really, I actually wanted to get up early so that I could start packing." He began to awkwardly sweep up the remaining splinters on the floor. I was positive that he'd never used a broom in his life.

"Come on rich boy, let me do it." I took the broom as he handed it to me and quickly cleaned the mess.

"Why are you up so early? Please don't tell me it's because you felt obligated to wash those wares."

"No, it's because my dad called. He said he's coming to get me, he should be here any minute actually."

"Did something happen? Why's he coming so early in the morning? Is he hurt?" Edward asked worriedly as he ran his fingers through is messy mop of bronze coloured hair.

"No, he's fine. He had a bad dream and now he thinks that he doesn't want me around you anymore, so he's coming to get me." I told him nonchalantly as I shrugged my shoulders. I certainly did not care what my father thought about Edward, he was too much of a good friend.

"Wait – what are you saying?"

"I don't know Edward… I don't know anything. My dad's angry as usual, he –" I was cut off as I heard his car horn blaring into the still night. "I have to go Ed. Forget what I said, my dad… he's an idiot." I told him as I haphazardly threw all of my bowls into a bag.

"Wait! Will you take me to the airport later and see me off?"

"Of course, I'll pick you up at 2:30." My dad's car horn beeped loudly once again. "Patience, sheesh!" I complained as I gave Edward a quick hug then raced out of the door into the chilly night.

I opened the car door and plopped myself heavily into the seat.

"You couldn't have even changed your clothes?" he demanded as his eyes disdainfully took in my tank top and shorts that I wore to sleep in.

"Well hello to you to dad." I retorted, rudely ignoring his comment. Why did I have to change my clothes? We were only four blocks away from our house

"Rosalie, stop it! I cannot deal with your insolence right now." He pinched his nose bridge in frustration. I couldn't feel sorry for him… _I hated him_.

"If you knew you couldn't deal with me you should've just left me where I was!"

"I am a forgiving man Rosalie, I've already forgiven you for your disrespect and I didn't even ask you for an apology." He huffed as he turned into our driveway. I couldn't get out of the car fast enough as I quickly ran up to the front door and unlocked it; _I needed to be far away from him_. Once inside I rushed into the kitchen where I threw the bag of containers onto a countertop then I made my way upstairs to my room and plopped myself angrily onto my bed, waiting for sleep that never came.

* * *

It was about an hour later that I decided to get out of bed and take a shower. I turned on the water, testing it with my foot to ensure that it was the perfect temperature and then lathered my creamy shampoo into my long hair. Afterward I opted to use my strawberry scented shower gel to clean my body.

My anger seemed to wash away and I just stood there in the shower for a while letting my thoughts drift.

I couldn't understand why the good kids – like Edward and I were born to the crappiest parents… the world wasn't fair! I literally could not remember the last time my dad and I had a conversation that wasn't strained or one where we didn't want to knock each other's head off. I was always defensive around him because he was always on my back about something it was always _Rosalie why didn't you do this or Rose it's nice that you got an A minus in math but you should be getting an A plus. Rosalie! Rosalie! Rosalie!_ All I wanted was one day without him down my throat.

He certainly was not the same after my mother died; he tended to pick arguments with me for the littlest things or just ignore me for days sometimes. It was almost as if he blamed me for her dying from cervical cancer. Maybe he just hated me because I was like an exact replica of her. Whatever his reason was I just wished he'd tell me that way maybe the both of us could go to my therapist Esme and figure it out.

I sighed as I felt the water starting to run cold. I switched it off stepping out of the shower and wrapping my fluffy green towel around my form. I walked over to the mirror that hung above the sink and looked at myself… my face was the bane of my existence yet my pride and joy. I was a living paradox; I loved looking good but at the same time, I hated when others noticed my looks and treated me like if I was handicapped because of them.

While getting dressed I thought of Edward and his confession last night, definitely the shock of the century, but I didn't mind; I trusted him with every fiber of my being. He was also the only person I realized; that I wasn't put off by because he thought I was good-looking. While he never admitted it to me, I'd noticed for a while the way he'd been checking me out, recently. Honestly I liked it.

While dressing I'd put on my violet coloured summer dress which I knew was going to help bring out the blue in my eyes and I blow dried and curled my hair styling it so that it fell in small waves down my back. I didn't feel the need to put on any make up today and, once I was satisfied with my reflection, I slipped on my Havaiana flip flops.

I crept out of my room and went downstairs as quietly as possible, afraid to disturb the _beast_. I sashayed around the kitchen looking through the cupboards and the refrigerator trying to determine what I was going to bake for Mr. McCarty.

I collected all of the ingredients that I would need to make chocolate-chip cookies and set to work making them.

While the dough was chilling in the freezer, I absentmindedly straightened up the living room and did some surface dusting before starting the laundry. I had just put the cookies into the oven by the time my father came down to the kitchen.

"Baking?" he asked casually as he poured himself a glass of OJ.

I nodded sharply, he seemed to bring back all of my anger from earlier "Cookies, they're for Mr. McCarty."

"The thought's a nice one but do you really think you should be baking those for him? He's an old man, he's probably trying to monitor what he eats." There he went again putting down everything I did. I didn't try to defend what I was doing; he was being an ass… we both knew that.

"So," I began awkwardly, changing the subject. "I need to use the car today, like around 2 o' clock."

"What for?" he walked over to the sink washing his glass.

"I need to pick up some groceries." I lied coolly. There was no way I could tell him about driving Edward to the airport, not after this morning's episode.

"Ok sure, there's one hundred dollars on my armoire, use that. Here are the keys I'll walk to church." I knew he wouldn't deny me the car once I mentioned going to the grocery, I _was_ the one who did the cooking after all.

"Thanks."

"Well, I'm off now; you know where to find me." He told me. I didn't reply, instead I walked over to the oven to peek at my cookies.

"Rose?" he called.

"What!" I said exasperated as I turned around, he was standing close to me. "What is it now?" I threw my hands up in the air dramatically, sure that he was going to impugn me once again for something.

"Well – I – uh." He dug his hands into his pockets nervously. "I'm sorry for missing last night, I should have been there." Wow, I was not expecting and apology. Although that still didn't make me feel any better. _Yeah you should've I thought savagely._

"Whatever it's not a big deal, I'm used to you not showing up." I hoped to make him feel guilty with my response.

"You think we can have dinner tonight? You don't even have to cook; I'll take you to one of those fancy restaurants in Port Angeles."

I did of course realize that he was making an effort, but I was not known to forgive and forget easily. He had to hurt like I did.

"I don't think that's going to be possible daddy."

"Why not he?" he asked softly.

"I don't feel like it anymore." I told him coldly watching him dead in the eye.

"Rose, don't be like this. I really am sorry." He said as he suddenly stretched his arm out to touch me.

I jumped back, startled hitting my wrist bone on the edge of the hard counter top. I cried out in pain and cradled my wrist to my chest as I eyed him cautiously. He knew I was not good with sudden movements.

"Oh gosh, I'm sorry honey." He said as he moved closer to me. I jumped back again as a reflex – a defense mechanism. I was seeing red, for a second he wasn't my dad, he was that _monster_! The psychopath that sometimes still haunted my dreams.

"Rosie it's me, it's safe. It's daddy." My mind kept switching from my dark memories to my present situation.

"I'm not blind!" I barked harshly. I tried to seem in control of the situation but I wasn't; my mind was a collage of painful memories as I stood there before him. I wished that I didn't look as scared and as weak as I felt.

He tried to touch me again, this time reaching his hand toward me tentatively, I'm sure he was just trying to comfort me but I couldn't allow that.

"Don't touch me!" I shouted my voice final.

"Rose I –"

"You're not helping can't you see that? You're just making it worse! You always make it worse! I hate you it's your fault I'm like this anyway. Just go away!" I felt like he was suffocating me. I looked straight into his eyes as he stared back defeated. I'd finally said the unspoken truth; it was _all_, his fault.

He motioned as if he was going to say something once again but he chose to bite his tongue instead and just waved goodbye before leaving with a look of remorse on his face.

* * *

Surprisingly the rain wasn't falling as I walked down the street to Mr. McCarty's house; actually a few of the sun's rays were peeking from behind the thick blanket of clouds.

Mr. McCarty was sitting in his porch, a cheerful look in his eyes of steely gray. His graying head of curls fell messily about his head. I opened his gate with an extra pep in my step, excited to see him. Even though he'd barely unpacked, his house already had a homey feel to it. I think it was because he was such a warm and fun loving person.

"What's that you got there, Ms. Rosalie?" he cocked an eyebrow playfully as he pointed to the bag I held in my arms. I climbed up the stairs leading to his porch and smiled as I watched the playful gleam in his eyes, they seemed so innocent and childlike that it was almost impossible to believe that he was once a Marine - that he'd probably killed people.

"Oh, just some chocolate chip cookies that I baked for you." I thrusted the bowl toward him, so that he could take it. He took his time opening the bowl sniffing dramatically as the aroma escaped.

"You're like the Good Samaritan aren't you? Helping me out and baking goodies for me. He picked up one of the cookies and took a bite. "Wow, I just might have to make sure that my Emmett marries you. These are phenomenal, I could surely get used to eating these more often." I chuckled at his remark as I sat down on the bench next to him.

"I'm glad that you like them." I replied smiling. "Have you decided what we're unpacking today?"

"Well, we can try to pack up the kitchen, arrange the living room and maybe even the downstairs bathroom if we have enough time."

"Aren't you going to unpack you son's room, didn't you say he's coming in the day after tomorrow?"

"Actually he called and said he coming in this afternoon instead."

"Really? Then we really should be unpacking his things."

"I'll do no such thing. The last time I unpacked his stuff for him, he was upset for a week claiming he couldn't find anything." I figured Mr. McCarty was talking about one of the many times he and Emmett had moved before he'd retired from the army.

"Well fine then. I don't want to get you into trouble. However, I have to go meet a friend for 2:30 so we need to get started."

"Ooh, somebody has a boyfriend." He teased playfully in a sing song voice. I swear he was an overgrown child.

"I'm actually not sure what he is, but I wouldn't call him my boyfriend exactly." I sheepishly admitted. I wasn't sure why I was telling this to Mr. McCarty but I trusted him for some reason and he looked as if he didn't mind listening.

"Well have you gone on a date yet?" I shook my head no. "Has he bought you jewelry yet?" I shook my head negatively once more. "And you haven't kissed him either have you?"

"No."

"Well then my dear, he has no dibs on you."

"But yesterday Edward told me that he likes me and he promised that when he comes back at the end of the summer we could try out the whole relationship thing."

"Do you like him?"

"Well… I… sure, he's my best friend."

"Liking someone as a friend and liking them as a romantic interest are two totally different things. Do you feel the same way about him?"

I paused in reflection,"No."

"Well then why are you going to waste your whole summer waiting for him? I am positive that there are many other guys who would be more than willing to date you."

"It's not that simple. I can't be with those other guys."

"Why not? Because of who your father is?"

"No, it's because I feel like if Edward's the only person that understands me and I trust him. So I think that I can learn to like him." I wanted to dig a hole and crawl into it. I was so ashamed of how pathetic I sounded and that I was actually having this conversation with an old divorced guy. I knew however that the truth was that I'd do anything to keep Edward on my good side forever, _I needed him_. Plus he was so good to me, this was the least I could do for him.

"My dear, you should never have to _'learn'_ to like someone. It's either you feel the connection or you don't."

"We should start unpacking." I told him desperately fighting to find a way out of this conversation. I knew he was right, but I also knew that it would be a million times harder for me to let someone other than Edward into my heart, he knew all the important things about me and he respected and understood my wishes.

* * *

It was about 11:30 when Mr. McCarty had shooed me out of his house, telling me that I needed to sort things out with Edward before he left. That was how I ended up standing in front of his large, teak front door craning my neck to look upward. I was trying to see whether or not he was in the attic – or "studio" as he called it.

I was just about to ring the doorbell a second time when the door flew open widely to reveal Edward standing there. I did a once over of him, my eyes slowly roamed up from his Vans clad feet, to his ripped Levis that hung loosely on his lean frame. They lingered on the muscles of his toned, naked torso and his firm pecks. Tucked under his right arm was his pride and joy, his acoustic Rickenbacker guitar.

My eyes paused on his lips; they held his signature crooked smile. When my eyes met his he winked before stepping aside allowing me to enter. I walked into the foyer of his house, observing his two suitcases in a corner of the room, next to his guitar case.

"Forgot your shirt, Cullen?" I asked him smiling, as my eyes drank up the sight of his pale, shirtless chest once again.

"You don't seem to mind, Hale."

I pushed him playfully. "I don't think any straight female would mind Ed." I looked up at him through my eyelashes, but he just smirked in response… _vain bastard_.

"How come you came so early, I thought you were helping out our new neighbor today?"

"I was. He chased me over here so that I could see you."

"You guys talked about me? I'm honoured." He feigned shock as I poked him in his stomach.

"I'm beginning to think that you enjoy feeling me up, Ms. Hale."

"Yeah… I actually do, rich boy. You're hotter when you're barebacked." I told him laughing.

He didn't laugh with me he just stood there looking down at me and studying my face for a moment before saying, "I have a present for you. It's in my room, you want to come up with me?" I nodded and he smiled as he took my hand leading me up the marble staircase that leads to the first floor where his bedroom was. I swear Edward would never get fat as long as he lived in this house. It was so huge, that just walking around from room to room was a workout.

"Ok so it's not the best gift I've ever given you, but I hope you like it." He went over to his desk at one end of the room while I sat down in the middle of his king-sized bed, tucking my legs neatly to one side of me. Once he'd collected what he wanted he walked over to his bed and sat facing me, hiding his arms behind his back. "Hold out your arm, Ro." He whispered.

"I automatically held out my right arm, regretting it once I realized that a bruise had formed on the area that I'd hit my wrist earlier that morning. Edward didn't seem to notice. He pulled out a Tiffany's box from behind him and opened it to reveal a white gold bracelet. It had a thick band that was delicately woven into an elaborate pattern, which sparkled with what I hoped were not real diamonds. He carefully fastened it to my wrist, before lowering his face so that his soft lips kissed the bruised spot on my hand.

His eyes met mine holding them in an intense gaze, before I looked away shyly. He then moved is hand upward tucking some of my golden curls behind my ear.

"It's a love knot – the pattern on the bracelet. I'd like you to keep it." He ran his fingers through his ever unruly hair before continuing. "As long as you have it, it will be a reminder of me and our friendship. I promise that when I come back we'll give this," he gestured to him and me, "a chance. And even if it doesn't work out, Ro we'll still be friends and I'll always love you and protect you."

A lone tear fell down my cheek as he spoke. He was so noble and kind, these two months without him were going to be extremely difficult.

"Oh Ed." I cried as I threw myself into his arms knocking him down in the process.

We just lay like that with me on top of him while he stroked my hair for a longtime. We didn't need to say anything. There was nothing to be said, we were simply contented to hold onto one another and listen to each other's heart beat.

* * *

"That's me Rose." Edward mumbled in my ear after a flight number was announced on the loudspeaker in the airport. He pulled me up to stand with him and we faced each other. Edward reached up cupping my cheek in his hand gently. "I promise that I'll call you whenever I can, despite the time difference and you have to promise me that you're going to try to make some new friends this summer. That way you'd still have fun."

I nodded and pulled him in for a hug, resting my head on his chest. "Bye, Edward." My heart suddenly felt, like it had a gaping hole in it.

"By Rose." He kissed the top of my head and gave me one last look before walking away.

I didn't cry when he walked away but I sure as hell felt like if I wanted to. It must've shown because I suddenly heard a deep voice beside me. "What's the matter beautiful, you look sad." I looked to where the voice was coming only to do a double take. The features that came into focus were eerily familiar. The curly hair, steely grey eyes and deep dimples looked exactly like…

"Mr. McCarty?" I blurted stupidly you could still hear the sadness in my voice.

"Wait, how did you know that? Are you stalking me?" he smiled, that familiar playful gleam taking over his cherubic features.

"No you just look like your dad." I said looking down at the floor my thoughts still on Edward.

"You know my dad?" He questioned his playful smile still intact. I didn't reply, I just wanted to wallow in the sadness of my current situation. "What's the matter? I know… you want me to kiss you better don't you?"

_Uh! How presumptuous._

"Look I suggest you leave me alone, if you know what's good for you." I told him sternly, he however was unfazed by my reaction instead he said.

"Well fine I have to go meet my dad anyway. But let me assure you, you'll be hearing from me again because pretty soon I'm going to be taking you to dinner." He winked at me and quickly before I could retaliate he walked off.

_Yeah right,_ I thought doubtfully as I watched him walk off trying my best not to stare at his perfectly shaped behind.

* * *

**A/N: Ok guys here's chapter two, I hope you enjoyed it. I really tried to show you guys the dynamic between Rose and Edward in this chapter and reveal her bad relationship with her dad. I hope it was clear enough for you guys. :-D**

**From now on I'll be posting a sneak peek of the next chapter in all reviews that I can reply to, unless you tell me otherwise. I am also going to try to update this story every Wednesday from now on... keep your fingers crossed.**

**Thanks a lot for reading,**

**Erin.**


	3. Balls Meet Girl

**A/N: Hey guys, I'm really very sorry that I haven't been updating my stories for a very long time. Life has just not been encouraging me to write recently. Basically, my mom passed away unexpectedly from pneumonia. I've been dealing with adapting to that, trying to be strong for my dad and plus getting back to school. The only reason I'm even saying this to you guys is so that you'd forgive me for not updating in a while. Please know that I'm not sure when I'll update after this, but I promise I will finish all of my stories. Just stick around for it.**

**Chapter Three.**

**Emmett's Point of View.**

Forks.

That's what he told me. Who the hell wants to move from Phoenix, Arizona to… Forks? I sighed frustrated for maybe the hundredth time, before adjusting myself in my airplane seat. I remember how I'd laughed when my dad told me that we were moving to Forks, Washington. I really thought he was going senile; before he'd retired from the Marine Corps, we'd lived in places like; Tibet, Australia and even South America… and he wanted us to move to Forks.

He claimed that the slower paced life there would be better for me 'cause he was fucking sure that Forks was the 'Holy Land.' Somehow, when I set my feet on its _divine_ ground I'd miraculously become a saint and give up my lifestyle of booze and drugs. And that for some reason – unknown to me – I'd stop wanting to get my dick wet by a different girl every night.

Pssh… as if!

Girls everywhere were willing to give it up to me; I'd have to be fucking psychotic to pass on that! The only hope I had for Forks was that it'd just lay out an entire new set of conquests and notches to my belt.

Speaking of conquests, _who is this fiery redhead that just sat down next to me_? I mentally patted myself on my back before turning on the McCarty charm, namely, my panty dropping smile.

I leaned closer to her, "What are you doing flying all alone?"

I noticed the way her bright green eyes moved from my lips to my eyes, then back to my lips again. She smirked, "Who wants to know?"

"Oh, I'm sorry." I apologized although, on the inside I was just rolling my eyes; I hated when girls pretended to care whether or not I had manners. I mean, _just give it up already_!

"The name's Emmett McCarty and I'm seventeen years old. And you are?"

"Scarlet Haynes." She ran her fingers through her wiry hair.

"Your parents weren't very original, were they?" I motioned to her hair as she blushed.

"If I had a penny for every time I heard that one."

I smiled and angled my body even closer to hers and whispered in her ear, "Don't feel bad about it. I love redheads; they have a certain _je ne sais quoi_ about them."

She seemed captivated by my dimples; _Scarlet Haynes was going to be way too easy_. I just hoped that airplane sex was as good as the movies hyped it up to be.

After about fifteen minutes of chatting up Scarlet, I decided that she was 'ready' so to speak. She kept checking me out, touching me and telling me how strong I was or how sexy I looked. I was just ecstatic that we were on the same page, _'cause God knows I could use a blow job_!

I waited until our ogre of an air hostess passed by before turning to Scarlet. I gently brushed some of her hair from in front of her air and asked, "What do you think about meeting me in the bathroom?"

She did a poor attempt of feigning shock at my frank suggestion before nodding once, and getting up out of her seat and walking down the aisle in the direction of the bathroom. I waited a couple of minutes before repeating what she'd just done. Once I was in front of the bathroom door, I knocked softly to let her know that I was there while my eyes cautiously took in my surroundings to ensure that no one had figured out what we were up to.

"Ah, you made it." Scarlet smiled just as I shut the door behind me and locked it. I awkwardly adjusted my giant-like body in the small bathroom area, and then sighed as she rested her pale hands on my chest, slowly running them down the length of my torso to the hem of my t-shirt.

She startled when I roughly pulled her arms away from my shirt, "No time." I mumbled, "Besides, what I really want you to deal with is in my pants." I continued, completely ignoring the look of disappointment on her face.

_Get over yourself already… this is about me, not you_!

I made quick work of slackening my belt and pulling my pants and boxers down letting my hard dick spring free from its confines. I smiled haughtily, loving the way Scarlet gasped when she realized that I had the king of all cocks. Resting my hand at the back of her neck, I pushed down with enough force for her to know that I wanted her on her knees. Her eyes met mine, her expression pained and I stood, waiting for her to object. I wasn't a total asshole… I would never force a girl to get me off if she didn't want to.

Luckily, she didn't say anything, so I gathered her hair up in my hands, frowned at how, stringy and stiff it felt and aligned her mouth with my penis.

"Suck it." I commanded gruffly, leaning back against the thin wall of the tiny space awaiting my release.

* * *

Scarlet was mediocre at best but – fuck it – in her defense we were in a cramped space with turbulence interrupting us every now and then. She didn't talk to me after we returned to our seats, nor did she say goodbye when we came off the plane.

I guess she did think I was an asshole after all, I couldn't care less though, it's not as though we were going to get married, or something.

I made my way over to the luggage carousel and grabbed my large duffle bag. Thankfully, I didn't have too much to carry since my dad had already taken most of my shit, in the moving truck. I paused as I dug around in my bag pocket for my pack of smokes.

I tucked my cigarette at the back of my ear, noticing a tuft of blonde hair in my peripheral vision. I hadn't even seen this girl's face yet but I was already horny. Her long hair looked so silky and soft. I could just imagine myself running my fingers through it. Damn, I was a sucker for nice hair… especially when it was blonde.

I began walking so that I fell into stride with this mysterious girl. I could only see a side profile of her face but I was sure that she was the prettiest girl I'd ever seen. She looked sad, so I thought that I should take it upon myself to cheer her up, even if it was that I had ulterior motives for doing so.

"What's the matter beautiful, you look sad." I smiled at her as she turned to look at me, her blue eyes lingering on my face.

"Mr. McCarty?" she asked, I could hear the sadness in her voice.

"Wait, how did you know that? Are you stalking me?" I asked playfully making sure to smile brightly so that my dimples were on display.

"No you just look like your dad." She mumbled dejectedly as she looked down at the floor.

"You know my dad?" I asked still smiling. She didn't reply, instead I heard her sniffle slightly, I don't know what it was but I felt this primal need to cheer this blue eyed beauty up. So I attempted once again the only way I knew how… with my cocky humour.

"What's the matter? I know… you want me to kiss you better don't you?" I joked chuckling. She didn't think it was funny, however. Instead she just glared at me before attempting to tell me to back off.

"Well fine I have to go meet my dad anyway. But let me assure you, you'll be hearing from me again because pretty soon I'm going to be taking you to dinner." I winked at her and quickly before she could respond I walked off.

* * *

"Well, at least it's bigger than the old house." I told my dad. He'd just finished giving me a tour of our home, and much to my surprise, I noticed some definite upgrades.

For one, my room was a lot bigger than my last one, so I could finally get the king sized bed that I wanted. I was a big guy and I needed a lot of room. Another perk to this new house was that my dad basically gave the basement to me; he told that I could do what I wanted with it. Of course I already had some ideas in mind and it sounded eerily similar to 'pimp pad.'

I had no idea how my father expected me to change my old ways when he was giving me this much freedom.

Sighing I looked around at the big empty space that was my new room… a place where fantasies would become reality. But before that happened I needed to make some minor improvements, that God awful orange colour was the first thing that needed to go.

"Hey dad, did you get any paint for my room." I called out to him as I ran downstairs to the kitchen where he was busy making dinner.

"Why would I do that? For you to remind me how I never get anything right?" he asked as he shook his head in annoyance and turned his attention back to the vegetables that he was cutting.

I smiled remembering that time when he'd redecorated my room for me when I was away at summer camp. I was ten years old, and all I'd ever talked about was how I wanted a baseball themed bedroom. My dad spent the entire time that I was away redecorating my room for me so that I'd be surprised when I came home. He was so excited to show me what he'd done, but I threw I a bitch fit when I saw my room.

It wasn't that the room looked bad, I was just mad that he touched my stuff only because I was hiding my very first playboy magazine in my room.

"Dad I was young and immature then, I can appreciate your decorating skills now."

He looked up from his vegetables, "Well I'm old and tired these days, I need to rest. You however, are in your prime, so it's your turn now to do all the hard work, my back's already killing me as it is."

"I though you had help?" I said, plopping a grape from the fruit basket into my mouth.

"I did… I mean, I do. Her name's Rosalie Hale, she's about your age actually. And she's exactly why my back's hurting, I can't let her lift any of the heavy stuff, she's a girl and I'm a gentleman with a conscience."

I smiled at my dad as I wiggled my eyebrows suggestively, "Is she hot?"

"Stop being like that Emmett." He chided. "Will you promise me something, son?"

"Sure," I shrugged.

"Promise me that you won't treat Rosalie like the others. She's a really nice person and she's good company. Just don't hurt her ok?"

"Alright." I promised half heartedly. I guess the world wouldn't end if I never got her in my bed, plus she was probably ugly as fuck anyway. Why else would she want to spend her free time helping an old man like my dad move in?

I plopped one last grape in my mouth before grabbing the car keys and telling my dad that I was off to find a store to get some paint for my room.

After driving for some time, I parked the wrangler alongside the sidewalk of the first general store came to. A boy with piercing blue eyes was standing under a sign saying 'Newton's.' He had a cigarette tucked behind his ear and his hands were haphazardly fishing around in his pockets for something. His name tag gave away that he was an employee at the store, apparently his name was Mike.

_Maybe if I just passed him straight and went into the store, he'd come tend to me_.

The general store was as small and useless looking as everything else in Forks. I did however, notice a sign in the back of the store saying 'Sherwin Williams' so I walked over to take a look.

The wind chime on the door clinked and I looked over to see the same loser from outside walking up to me.

"You wouldn't happen to have a lighter, would you?' he asked friendly.

"I don't know, I should be asking you that, shouldn't I? This is a general store after all."

His face flushed in embarrassment, "You're right. I'll go get one."

"I'm just kidding dude, I have one. Just help me get some paint first, and then we'll go out front for a smoke."

"Alright."

After the countless swatches Mike showed me, I settled on a cool, gray-blue colour for the walls and some white paint for the moldings.

Once I'd paid, we both stepped outside. I rested my two cans of paint on the sidewalk next to me and pulled my lighter out of my pants pocket handing it to Mike.

"I'm Emmett, just moved here." I told him as I took the lighter back from him and removed the cigarette I'd tucked behind my ear earlier to light it.

"Emmett, I know you just moved here. This is a small town you know, we recognize new faces." He joked.

I chuckled lightly as I took a long pull on my cigarette, feeling my body relax, and all of my cares and troubles crash like waves as I exhaled.

"So, where are you from dude? You looked tanned."

"Not for much longer, by the looks of the weather here, but I'm from Phoenix." I replied before changing the topic. "Listen dude, what's the party scene like here? Is it any good or is it non- existent?"

Mike snickered beside me, "The party scene is good… if you know who to kick it with. I can give you all there is to get; the drugs, the events, the girls. Everything that the wonderful nightlife has to offer; Forks is my playground, man."

I smiled at his confidence before taking another long drag on my cigarette.

And that was when I saw her again; the hot girl from the airport. She was jogging along the sidewalk opposite to where Mike and I were standing and it was as though time stopped for a while. Her hair was tied up into a messy bun, her body was clothed in a tank top and a pair of shorts and I just watched her, mesmerized. Never had a sweat glistening body looked so tempting.

I nudged Mike on his shoulder with my elbow, "What about her, is she one of your girls?"

"I wish!" he scoffed, turning to me with a serious expression on his face. "Don't waste your time on her man; she'll never give it up! She's the reverend's daughter, her name's Rosalie Hale."

My jaw dropped almost instantly as I made the connection of who she was. There was no way she could be the same girl that was helping my dad, life was going to be real interesting with her in my house. Maybe Forks wasn't too bad after all.

"She's helping my dad with some stuff… I thought she was ugly."

"Ha! You're crazy, man! She's the hottest girl here but she's a total stuck up bitch. To make matters worse, she only hangs out with this one guy, Cullen. I think they're like together to, so you should just leave her alone. Trust me; you don't want his sloppy seconds."

Never in my seventeen years of life had I wanted sloppy seconds so badly. I didn't care if she had a thousand boyfriends or if her father was the frickin' pope… I seriously needed to fuck her brains out… asap.

Mike continued talking while my eyes followed her fine ass until she rounded the corner. "So… a couple of us are heading down to the beach at La Push tonight. You should come. We'll be lighting it up, and there's going to be tons of alcohol, what do you think?"

"I'll be there, man." We fist bumped before I dropped my cigarette bud on the pavement and hopped into the car to head back home.

* * *

I woke up with one happy grin on my face. Last night was good! I didn't hook up with anyone, but I hanged out and had some fun. Most of the kids I met were cool, but their weed was phenomenal!

Stretching the sleep out of my long limbs, I groaned loudly. I could clearly make out two voices coming from downstairs.

I quickly pulled on a pair of jeans and walked over to my duffle to grab my toothbrush. Once inside of my bathroom, I doused my face with cold water and brushed away the taste of stale alcohol from my mouth, then I headed downstairs.

I felt like a kid at Christmas when I noticed who my dad was talking to.

"Hey dad and… Rosalie." I smiled cheerfully as I plopped myself on the sofa next to my dad.

"Oh… you two meet already?" my dad scratched his head in confusion.

I was sure I heard Rosalie grumble a "sadly" under her breath, but I just ignored it.

"Yeah, we met at the airport. Plus, people are kind of hard to miss when they go jogging around town in their underwear." I winked at Rosalie.

"Ouch!" my dad's hard elbow jabbed me on my ribs. I looked at him only to be greeted by a death glare.

"I was not running around town in my underwear Mr. McCarty." Rosalie explained, while her face flushed red.

"I know, sweetheart. I'm afraid Emmett here can't tell the difference between fantasy and reality." He explained while still glaring at me.

If anything, I swore that he only made matters worse, since Rosalie began nervously playing with her fingers and looking down at her lap.

_Gee, talk about no sense of humour_.

"So," I began trying to ease the tension in the room, "what are you guys up to?"

"We're taking a break. We finished downstairs this morning, because some of us actually wake up in the morning." My dad scolded.

"Cool." I nodded, ignoring his comment. "Anyone wants to help me paint my room?"

"No can do son, I have a few errands to run." Dad groaned loudly as he stood up from the couch, I should probably get going actually.

"Ok." I replied shortly, turning my attention to Rosalie. "What about you, Rosalie? You think you could help me paint my room?

She threw me a skeptical look, and then she looked at my dad. Her pretty features softening as she looked at him.

"Sure."

She sighed heavily before standing up and automatically smoothing her hands over her v-necked top, decreasing wrinkles that did not exist.

I, however, was not complaining, 'cause when she pulled on her shirt, she allowed even more of her creamy boobs to peep at me.

The two of us alone in my bedroom was definitely going to be interesting.

"Alright, well since you two are going to be occupied I'll just leave you to get to work." My dad told us as he mumbled a goodbye and grabbed the car keys before walking out the front door.

Deciding it best to grab some food, I stood up from my seat and motioned for Rosalie to follow me into the kitchen.

"So, can I offer you something to eat? I'm not sure what we have." I told her as I rummaged through the fridge looking for food.

"I baked muffins."

She spoke so softly that I barely heard her.

"Really?" I asked as my eyes fell on the container on the kitchen island that held the muffins.

Something about the eerie silence that fell over the room threw me off my game. The way Rosalie just stood there looking at everything except me; she wouldn't say anything and that intrigued me. But worse than that was the fact that it I didn't know what to say or do to make it better to get rid of the tension.

"Can I have one?" I finally said after what seemed like an eternity. She nodded, but still without looking at me, instead Rosalie looked down at her hands as she fumbled with them nervously.

I didn't understand… was she afraid of me? I knew that I was a big guy and that my muscles may appear menacing to some, but I was nothing more than a cuddly teddy bear. Every fiber of my being, screamed at me to comfort her and to get rid of her fears.

Cautiously, I walked toward her.

Rosalie still didn't look at me, even as I stopped directly in front of her.

"What's wrong?" I questioned earnestly.

No answer.

I tried again, "Did I do something wrong?"

She still didn't answer. Instead this time, she backed away from me. She kept retreating until her slender body came flush against the wall behind her.

Slowly, I closed the distance between us… I just wanted to help her and to make matters worse; I could swear I saw tears threatening to escape from her eyes.

In an attempt to comfort her, I reached my arm up to tuck some of her long hair behind her ear. It was obvious from the nearness of our bodies that I had long invaded her personal space.

As she stood there shaking in front of me, I realized how much bigger than her I was. I hated that she was afraid of me… I just wanted her to know that I'd never hurt her. _I just wanted her to know that she had to reason to be scared._

"Why are you afraid?" I whispered.

There was a long silence, one I was willing to wait through in the hopes of getting an answer. But, in the blink of an eye, her left knee connected to that extremely sensitive area between my legs.

I barely heard her grumble, "Because I took so long to do that." In response to my question, all I was seeing were stars.

* * *

**A/N: Hey guys thanks for reading, I'm a bit insecure about this chapter so please tell me what you think. Once again, I'm very sorry for keeping this for so long; please don't lose faith in me yet,**

**Erin.**


	4. Home is Where the Heart is

**A/N: Hey guys your ever delinquent author is back with an update. Tell me what you think!**

Song for this chapter: The Arctic Monkeys- Old Yellow Bricks

The Lake District England: http:/www(dot)phototravelreview(dot)com/england-the-lake-district/

Rosalie Hale: http:/pics3(dot)royalgirls(dot)com/media/pics/2009/02/23/candice_swanepoel/candice_swanepoel_01(dot)jpg

Emmett McCarty: http:/cullenboysanonymous(dot)com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/kellan-lutz-shirtless(dot)jpg

Edward Cullen: http:/community(dot)livejournal(dot)com/twilight_book/358196(dot)html

Chapter 4

Rosalie's Point of View

Unlike the rest of her patients, I was allowed to see Esme at her home. Physically I was standing in her front yard facing her and Carlisle's colonial style home, but my mind was far away. I kept thinking of Emmett, I knew that kicking him was uncalled for but I couldn't help myself I was desperate to get away from him, from the way he looked at me. I looked up at the Cullen's house once again, _I hope she's home._

Esme must have sensed my presence since the large oak door flew open suddenly and her petite silhouette appeared in the door frame.

"Rosalie!" she gasped, her dark brown eyes taking me in. "You're panting sweetheart, what happened are you alright?" by now, she'd taken me into her arms and was squeezing me tightly.

"I didn't know where else to go! My legs led me here – I think I'm in trouble." Everything I said came out in a jumbled mess and Esme furrowed her brows in confusion.

"Calm down dear. Here, let's go inside and you can tell me everything." With her arm draped around me she ushered me inside of her house. Once we were both seated on the ruby red couch that she had (in what Edward and I had dubbed her and Carlise's 'love dungeon' of a living room) she motioned for me to retell her what I was saying. Her arm was still draped around me and she held me close, hoping to make me comfortable enough to talk.

"I… umm… I kicked a guy in his… well _you know_." I had a little bit of hope that if I didn't say balls that she'd somehow think that I'd kicked Emmett somewhere less important and maybe, just maybe she'd cut me some slack.

_What wishful thinking_.

Esme's almond shaped eyes widened in shock, "Why on earth would you do that Rosalie Hale? There is never and excuse for hitting another human being, what is wrong with you."

By now Esme had released her reassuring hold on me and was looking at me square in the face, her expression told me that she was disappointed in me.

"I was scared." I responded quietly and nervously began playing with my fingers, I hated disappointing Esme. It made me feel completely hopeless, like if I'd never be able to live life as any regular girl my age or worse, that I'd never forget my past.

"Did _he _hurt you?" her voice held a lethal snarl that caught me off guard; she probably thought that something horrible had happened to me, apparently she forgotten how much of a punk I could be when I was scared.

I tried to pick my words wisely as I spoke again, "Not really… he cornered me and well… I think he likes me and I just felt so pressured and my heart was pounding. I didn't know what else to do. I'm extra tense today."

She squeezed my hand reassuringly, "Who's the boy, Rose?"

"Emmett McCarty, he just moved here. He thinks he's God's gift to earth… he kept throwing me these looks and then he was in my space, I just _had_ to do it!"

She sighed, "Rosalie, I thought we got through all of this, you have to _tell _people how you feel, and you have to really make an effort! There is no truth to that 'actions speak louder than words' statement."

I looked down into my lap dejectedly; there was nothing in the world that I hated more than letting her down.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't say it to me; tell it to that Emmett kid."

"I will." I promised.

"Good." She replied shortly pulling me into a comforting hug. "You said something about being extra tense today? Why's that?"

I actually scowled when she'd asked that, it just carried my mind right back to what had happed between me and my father this morning. "My dad's just so annoying; I cannot wait for the day that I get to go off to university. At least then I won't have to see him every day, I could choose not to answer my phone when he calls and I'd never come home for holidays."

"Don't say things like that, dear, you don't mean it." She reasoned.

"Whatever, I need to leave, it's getting late and I have choir practice." I stood up from the couch and started walking away.

"Rose come on, don't be like that, don't be angry."

"I'm not angry… not at you at least."

And it was true. I was angry at myself, because I knew she was right. No matter how much my father hurt me, I always tried to hold onto our hopeless relationship; after all he was the only relative I had.

I could hear them mumbling. Maybe they wanted me to hear them, maybe they didn't nevertheless I wished they would stop.

"She thinks she's so much better than us."

"I bet she's sleeping with Cullen."

And that wasn't even half of what they usually said. I wanted so much to tell them that it wasn't true, that I wasn't stuck up, that I was just like them, just the average teenage girl but… _it just wasn't that easy_. So instead I just avoided eye contact with them and placed myself as far away from them as possible.

Choir practice had just finished and I and the other girls my age, Jessica, Angela, Sarah and Rebecca were all getting ready to leave. Jessica, Sarah and Rebecca had made it their hobby to 'love to hate me' so they were about ten yards away from me gossiping as they usually did. Angela, on the other hand, had always remained perfectly neutral towards me; maybe she was _one of the only_ girls our age who didn't hate me.

"Jeez, would you guys stop it! She's right there, she can hear you! Can't you see it's bothering her?" Angela had snapped suddenly and suddenly started yelling at our local 'gossip girls.'

"What's eating you fatso? We _were_ leaving anyway!" Jessica retorted as she and her crew walked past us out of the door giggling.

Angela just made a monkey face behind their backs and chuckled to herself.

"Thanks, that meant a lot." I told her, gratefully.

"Nah, don't mention it." She smiled brightly. "Girls like that have horrible karma waiting for them."

"I sure hope so."

With her smile still intact she said, "Well I should get going, I've got to catch the bus into Port Angeles, in five minutes."

"I could give you a ride, if you want." I offered gingerly, surprised that I'd actually offered my service.

"Really? No you shouldn't go out of your way."

"No it wouldn't be any trouble; they've finally opened a Nordstrom there. I have to go check it out." It was the least I could do, she'd just stood up for me, and so I had to thank her.

"Alright."

About five minutes into our silent car ride Angela spoke, "Did you dye your hair, or are those highlights natural?"

"They're natural."

"They are gorgeous… you're gorgeous."

"Thanks a lot." I gushed.

"Man, if had just a quarter of your looks, I bet I could have any man within a ten mile radius. But," she sighed, "Genetics aren't always fair, ya know?" she mused, gesturing to her body and sighing.

I looked her over and concluded that nothing was wrong with her. Yes she was a bit on the chubby side and yes her hair was maybe a tad too frizzy but that was nothing that a little exercise and hair serum couldn't fix.

"Oh nothing's wrong with you, Angela. I think you're just listening to Jessica too much. What she says doesn't count… you know she's bulimic, right?"

"Really, are you kidding me?" She gasped.

I shook my head, "But don't go telling that to everyone ok? Because then you'd be just like her."

"Oh I won't." She promised. "How'd you find out though?"

"Edward told me, he sorta dated her for a while." I told her tucking some stray tendrils of hair behind my ear.

By now I'd just turned into Port Angeles, "Where is it you wanted to go?"

"Oh I just wanted to stop at, 'Wendy's'." she told me.

"Ok, you mind if I eat with you?

"Oh not at all, I think that'd be just fine."

It was now eight o'clock and I was lying on my bed thinking about my topsy turvy day. I smiled as my mind drifted back to Angela and the two hours we'd spent shopping earlier. Angela had to be the most hilarious person I'd ever met; she was so at ease and comfortable with herself. She invited me to a party that Mike Newton was throwing tonight, and I agreed to come. I certainly didn't have to worry about my dad finding out because he left a message telling me that he'd be home late anyway. I knew that if my door was shut when he got home he wouldn't bother to check in on me, especially after our fight this morning.

Just then, the cordless phone on my dresser started ringing.

"Hello?" I answered without looking at caller ID.

"Hey Ro." Edward's smooth voice spoke on the other end of the line and I couldn't help the silly grin that crossed my face.

"Oh my God! Ed, what's up? How's everything over there in Monaco?"

He chuckled, "It's actually really nice, my parents have been cool so far. Plus, it's really nice to be in the sun for a change, you know?"

"I can only imagine. I'm afraid that I've only been two places in my life the Lake District back in England where it rained nonstop and Forks, where it rains even more than the last place!" I joked.

"Do you ever miss England, Ro?" I mean I hate Forks, but it's my home I don't think I could just completely move from there and just forget it forever."

"Home is where the heart is." I sighed, "After everything that happened to me over there… I barely ever miss it. Remember when I first got here? It was my sole mission in life to lose my accent."

"It didn't work, you still slip up every now and then." He chuckled. I could almost picture his crocked grin.

"I miss you so much Edward! I wish you could've taken me with you."

"You'd have loved it here." He mused. "Don't worry, I promise one day when your dad is out of the picture that I'd bring you here and pretty much anywhere else you want to go." He promised. "How are things going with you though? What have you been up to?"

"It's been alright, I guess. I haven't seen my dad since this morning… nothing new there." I shrugged, "But, I did make a new friend."

"Who? Not Lauren right?" he feigned shock.

I chuckled, "No silly, Angela. We went shopping today."

"Really? What did you get?"

'Umm just a pair of jeans and a swim suit. Maybe I'll get to go up to the lake sometime before summer's over."

"Well, I think it's cool that you found someone nice to hang out with,"

"Thanks Ed, but I should really get going; I have some stuff to finish doing."

We both said our goodbyes and I hung up the phone. Deciding that it was about time that I started getting ready I walked over to my closet and began choosing my outfit for the party.

Little did I know that this party would change my life forever.

Emmett's Point of View

I had just finished getting ready for Newton's house party so I walked over to my dad's room to let him know that I was leaving.

I stuck my head into his room, "I'm leaving dad."

He looked up from the television and his eyes met mine, "I swear to God Emmett if you start your crap here I will ship you off to military school."

"Dad what the hell, it's just a party. I'm not going to do anything!"

"Just a party? Just a party?" he huffed. "Don't get me started, and if you aren't going to do anything, maybe you should just stay home, huh? You never do anything here!"

I rolled my eyes my dad was so dramatic. It's not like I've ever had a run in with the law or anything. I never understood why he always had to come down on me, because I liked to socialize.

"Dad, I am not in the mood right now ok? I'm out, don't wait up for me."

With that I ran down the stairs grabbed the keys for the Jeep and my jacket and slammed the door shut on my way out. Once I was in the SUV, I blasted the stereo and sped out of the yard.

My thoughts kept drifting back to what had happened between Rosalie and me this morning. I couldn't believe that she'd kicked me! I _mean what the heck_? I hadn't done anything wrong, and yet my balls were still sore now.

The saddest thing however, wasn't my still aching balls, it was the way she'd looked at me… was she afraid of me? I mean I might have looked like the green giant's long lost Caucasian twin, but everyone who knew me knew that I was just a loveable wee lad on the inside.

_Everyone but her_.

Perhaps that was why (against the will of my sore balls) I decided that I had to apologize the next time I saw her.

By now I was just parking my car in front of Mike's house; music was blaring and there were teenagers everywhere. I walked around for a bit but I couldn't find Mike or any of the other kids I'd met last night at the beach so I just eased my way through the sea of grinding bodies and checked out the refreshment table.

"Hey stranger," a female voice slurred behind me, "I'm afraid we haven't met."

I turned around and found a medium sized girl with a cropped hairstyle and dark brown eyes looking up at me. She looked… wasted.

"Hello, I'm Emmett." I told her flashing my dimples in full force.

"Oh I know who you are," she winked, "I'm Lauren.

I couldn't help but smile to myself. I could tell that I already liked this girl; she got straight to the point. Her hands were already raking up the muscled plain of my torso and she had an expectant look in her eyes. "You wanna go somewhere private." She asked seductively.

I was going to shout 'fuck yes!' but right at that time a familiar head of golden hair caught my eye.

"Rosalie?" I mumbled stupidly.

"No not Rosalie! Lauren!" Lauren snarled angrily.

"Hold on." I told her as I walked across the room to where Rosalie was standing talking next to some chick.

"Hey!" I gently nudged her shoulder.

She turned around slowly, cautiously. Her expression was confused until she recognized me.

"Emmett! I need to talk to you." She shouted over the loud music, "Can we go somewhere quieter?"

"Sure." I told her. "Follow me." I led her down the hallway adjoining the living room that we were in and opened the first door we came to which happened to be to the bathroom.

She closed the door behind us, locked it and leaned her body against it inhaling deeply. I used that moment of silence to check her out. She looked sexy! Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she had on black skinny jeans that hugged every curve on her body and a black shimmery tank top.

"I'm sorry about this morning, you know." I apologized. Her expression softened when she looked up at me.

"I'm the one who should apologize; I shouldn't have kicked you… that was very low of me." She paused a little then continued, "And at the same time, I want you to know that I'm not one of those other girls." She gestured flippantly in the air.

I could tell from the judgmental, undermining tone in her voice that she thought that I was one of _those guys_. The type of guy who just used girls for my selfish needs, one of those guys who couldn't stay in a serious relationship, one of those guys that her father would never approve of. I felt a desperate need to show her that she was wrong.

"I know what you're thinking you know, and you're wrong!"

_I could change for you_…

She rolled her eyes at me mentally saying, "Yeah right."

"It's true, I can prove it. Just give me a chance." I pleaded, my mind once again replaying the way she'd looked at me that morning. I _never _wanted her to look at me like that again.

Her next words nearly knocked my socks off, "How are you going to prove it?"

I smiled brightly, "Remember, I did promise to take you to dinner."

She just smiled and with one last look at me, let herself out of the bathroom shutting the door behind her.


	5. Memory

_**A/N: I am extremely sorry for the late updates; I was in the process of moving and in the middle of my Advanced Proficiency examinations at school. Updates should be more frequent **_

_**now. **_

_**Previously…**_

"Hey!" I gently nudged her shoulder.

She turned around slowly, cautiously. Her expression was confused until she recognized me.

"Emmett! I need to talk to you." She shouted over the loud music, "Can we go somewhere quieter?"

"Sure." I told her. "Follow me." I led her down the hallway adjoining the living room that we were in and opened the first door we came to which happened to be to the bathroom.

She closed the door behind us, locked it and leaned her body against it inhaling deeply. I used that moment of silence to check her out. She looked sexy! Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she had on black skinny jeans that hugged every curve on her body and a black shimmery tank top.

"I'm sorry about this morning, you know." I apologized. Her expression softened when she looked up at me.

"I'm the one who should apologize; I shouldn't have kicked you… that was very low of me." She paused a little then continued, "And at the same time, I want you to know that I'm not one of those other girls." She gestured flippantly in the air.

I could tell from the judgmental, undermining tone in her voice that she thought that I was one of _those guys_. The type of guy who just used girls for my selfish needs, one of those guys who couldn't stay in a serious relationship, one of those guys that her father would never approve of. I felt a desperate need to show her that she was wrong.

"I know what you're thinking you know, and you're wrong!"

_I could change for you_…

She rolled her eyes at me mentally saying, "Yeah right."

"It's true, I can prove it. Just give me a chance." I pleaded, my mind once again replaying the way she'd looked at me that morning. I _never_wanted her to look at me like that again.

Her next words nearly knocked my socks off, "How are you going to prove it?"

I smiled brightly, "Remember, I did promise to take you to dinner."

She just smiled and with one last look at me, let herself out of the bathroom shutting the door behind her.

_**Chapter Five: Memory**_

_**Song for this chapter: So Sorry - Feist**_

_**Emmett's Point of View**_

After our conversation Rosalie and I went our separate ways for the night. For some reason I had an inexplicable urge to impress her, so I did that in the only ways I knew how: by not flirting with other girls and by avoiding alcohol like if it was the plague. Needless to say, parties weren't exactly entertaining when you didn't see that ever famous green fairy.

I was leaning up on one of the pillars of the back patio taking long drags on my cigarette. It was quiet out here, allowing me to clear my mind of the frightening thoughts of Rosalie gyrating with any of the guys inside of the house. Instead I was able to enjoy the calming effect of the nicotine and the low murmur of the music from inside of the house. Feeling content, I looked around marveling particularly at the beauty of the stars above me. I had never noticed stars like this back in Phoenix… perhaps my dad was right, maybe Forks could change me.

I smirked in amusement as I heard a guy's voice mumbling something from around the side of the house. He was too far away for me to make out his words but I did hear a girl chuckling at whatever it was he'd said.

Their conversation became clearer as they neared me.

"Come on babe, just a little bit further." I instantly recognized the voice as Mike Newton's as he mumbled to his girl. He was such a lucky fucker! I was sure he was going to get laid.

_Or was he…_

The girl's voice – _Rosalie's_ voice – caught me off guard.

'I don't want to go any further Mike, let's just stay right here, or maybe we can go back inside… you know… where there're other people." She was pleading with him in a quiet, unsteady voice.

My feet were rooted in place for a few seconds, I was unsure about whether or not I should interrupt them.

"Come on Rose, don't be a tease. You weren't acting like this five minutes ago when we were inside, you were all over me, remember?" he chuckled to himself, "I bet your dad's gonna throw a fit when he finds out we fucked… this must be his worst nightmare."

"Please Mike, don't do anything. I made a mistake; I should have never allowed you to bring me outside. Let's just head back inside and enjoy the party – you're drunk"

_That's it!_

My jaw clenched in anger as I chucked my cigarette and rounded the house to where their voices came from. I don't think I was ever in my entire life less prepared for what I saw when I spotted the two of them. Mike had Rosalie's body pressed flush against his and the house. _He_ had both of her hands pinned between one of his. _He_ had raised her tank top so high that her bra clad breasts were exposed. _He_ had his face buried in her neck while tears streamed down her face.

_He had gone too fucking far!_

Something inside of me snapped and I wasted no time in connecting my right fist with his ribs. He was so preoccupied defiling Rosalie's body that he didn't even see me coming.

"What the fuck, man!" he slurred, gesticulating wildly with one hand and clutching his side with the other. His face was red with anger.

"Leave her the hell alone dude, or I swear to God." I threatened sizing him up.

"Is she your bitch McCarty? Should've just told me, I would've left her alone and just gone with one of my usual girls!"

"Yeah well maybe you should sober up and go find one of those chicks. Just _leave Rosalie Hale_ the hell alone!" I shouted.

"Don't tell me what to do dude." He slurred stumbling over himself drunkenly.

I hoped to convey to Mike how unimpressed I was with him at the moment and how livid he made me.

I looked down at his face.

"Why don't you just get your ass inside Mike." My voice was monotone and severe. I slapped my right hand onto his shoulder and squeezed the space between his collar bone and neck tightly. Thanks to my dad's military training I knew that that move would cause him immense pain.

He winced in at the pressure created by my fingers, whimpered and mumbled 'Okay,' before retreating back into his house on unstable, teetering legs.

Once Mike was out of sight, I turned all of my attention to Rosalie. My heart skipped a beat when I saw her. She looked listless, tears flowing out of her eyes. Despite the fact that she was obviously crying, however, her body failed to shudder with sobs. She just lay there fixed in a supine position.

I crouched down near to her and caressed her cheek hoping to calmly check on her and see that she was at least physically unharmed.

"It's alright – he's gone now." I assured my voice low and gentle.

She responded after I stroked her cheek a few more times.

"Emmett?" I could see her eyes searching behind probably looking to see if Mike was really gone.

"He's gone, I swear." I assured her still stroking her cheek. "Would you like me to take you home?"

She nodded, "But I have a friend with me, I brought her here. She lives all the way in La Push."

"I'll take her home too."

Rosalie's expression softened, "I can't have you do all of that." She sat up and reached into her pocket, pulling out a bunch of keys. "Her name is Angela; she's the girl you saw me with earlier. Just tell her that I'm sick or something." She handed me her keys, "And tell her to take my car home."

"Let me just take you to my car first." I straightened up and gently pulled her with me. We walked stoically and quietly to my car and just as I was opening up the passenger side car door to let her in, a female voice shouted her Rosalie's name from across the yard.

"Angela." She sighed as she waited for her friend to cross the lawn.

"Rose, what the hell are you doing? Who is this guy?" She asked worriedly shooting daggers in my direction.

"Don't worry he's just going to take me home. I'm not feeling well. She took her keys from me and handed it to Angela. "Drive my car home and I'll get it from you tomorrow."

"But – "Angela began to protest, but Rose cut her off.

"Please Angela, just do it." Rose pleaded softly.

Angela nodded once in our direction and slowly turned and walked back into the party.

Once I'd made sure Rose was buckled in and comfortable, I hopped into the jeep and started it.

"I don't know how to get to your house; you'll have to guide me." I told her pulling away from the curb.

She sighed tiredly, "We live on the same street, Emmett. My house is the white house on the corner."

"Really?" I asked genuinely shocked. She didn't reply however so I decided to change the topic. "So… I noticed you have an accent, you from the UK?"

She nodded sharply, "England."

"That's cool. What town are you from?"

"I lived in Glenridding, near the Ullswater Lake, which I'm sure _you_ have _neve_r heard of." She turned and watched me severely, "Is there anything else you'd like to know?'

"Whoa, I'm sorry I was just trying to help take your mind off of things, that's all."

"Well it isn't working so why don't you just shut up and drive?"

"That's it!" I slammed on the brakes suddenly and pulled the jeep. "I have no problem with putting you out, you know! I deserve better, I'm only trying to help you out!"

The look she shot at me almost gave me frostbite. "Fine I don't need you! My house is only three blocks away."

She got out of the car and slammed the door shut and started walking.

"Fuck!" I hissed punching my clenched fist into the staring wheel. My conscious was trying to get me to follow her and persuade her to get back into the car. Sadly_, I_ was winning that battle and_ I_ wanted to see the look on her face as I sped past her. Instead however, I sat back in my seat and smiled happily to myself as rain started pouring down and I grinned even wider when she broke into a quick jog in a haste to get out of the rain.

_**Rosalie's Point of View**_

I was livid, panting and drenched by the time that I got to my front porch.

"Crap!" I swore as I felt my empty pant pocket for my house key. It was on the same bunch of keys as my car key… the bunch of keys that I'd given to Angela. In my anger, I turned and spitefully knocked down my dad's favorite cacti plant. It hit the ground loudly and broke decorating the floor with fragments of terracotta splinters and soil. I leaned on a wall and slowly slid myself onto the floor, thinking about how much I hated everything about my life at that moment.

'Rose? Is that you?" My dad stepped out onto the porch dressed in his usual black striped pajamas. I stood up and faced him, mentally preparing myself for his lecture that I knew he wouldn't fail to give me.

"That's it? You're just going to stand there?" You have nothing to say for yourself?"

I shrugged my shoulders wearily. I was absolutely not in the mood for this conversation right now.

My father sighed angrily and his jaw trembled in anger as he stepped aside leaving a space for me to enter the house.

"Where were you? And where on earth is my car Rosalie Hale?" his angry vein looked more menacing tonight that it ever did before.

I raised my hands nonchalantly, "Why do I have to tell _you _anything, you _never_ cared before."

He looked genuinely shocked at my response. His jaw slackened and shut at least a dozen times before he spoke.

"What do you mean Rosalie? I'm the parent and you're the child – _my child_ – I need to know your whereabouts. _Always_! That's the way it works! And how could you even suggest that I don't care about you? Do you think we'd be even having this conversation if I didn't care about you? You think I'd wait up until," he looked at the large clock above the fireplace, "Two thirty just to make sure that you were safe, if I didn't care about you?"

I could not believe that my father was actually lecturing me about 'caring for me'. I wanted to tell him that fathers who _cared about_ their children didn't abandon them with pedophiles two weeks after their mother died, that fathers who _cared about_ their kids probably told them that they loved them every day and that fathers who _cared for_ their kids at least made it home for dinner one time.

Instead I asked, "Can I go upstairs now?"

"No Rosalie! You cannot go anywhere until you tell me where you've been!"

Something within me snapped at that moment and all of the tears that I was trying to hold back until I was safely within the privacy of my room came flooding down.

"I was in a party, okay? And you don't have to lecture me about it because I can assure you that I'll never go to one again!"

His expression softened, "Did something happen?"

"Evidently!" I sobbed gesturing to my rain drenched hair and clothing.

He moved closer to me his hands widening to hug me but I pulled away from him, the last thing I needed was his pity. I wiped my tears.

"Look, I'm freezing okay? So unless you intend to punish me, I'd like to go up to my room."

His only response was to stand there confused by my outburst, so I stepped around him and slowly walked up to my room.

It had been two days since the party and I'd become an emotional wreck. I was paralyzed by memories of what happened Saturday night… what could have transpired between Mike and I had Emmet not shown up. And more importantly I was paralyzed by memories that I tried to bury when I left England, memories that Esme had tried to help me free myself from.

_I longed for the loss of memory._

My father kept peeking through my door constantly; he knew that something had happened at the party he just didn't know what. I was aware that he really did want me to talk to him about what had happened, but the truth was that my father and I had grown so far apart that I didn't even know how to utter the words to him. Sadly the only person involved in the entire incident that I wanted to speak to was probably planning my murder for my ungrateful behavior.

I knew that I should have been nicer to him in the car but the intricacies of my psyche disabled me from doing so. Whenever I felt threatened or when I was scared, I turned into Bitchalie and I lashed out at everyone… even those trying to help me.

I heard the chime of the doorbell faintly and sighed as I made my way to the door to see who it was.

"Oh. My. God!" I exclaimed at the sight that greeted me at the door. There stood Emmett McCarty looking extremely hilarious. He had on a teddy bear costume that was cut out at the face and an adorable smile showing off his cute dimples. But really the cherry on top of the cake was the helium balloon in his hand which read, 'Just forgive me already'

I chuckled heartily and stepped aside for him to enter my house.

He looked around, before coming in fully.

"Where's Papa Hale, Goldilocks?"

"At work." He stepped inside happily with that. "Look I'm really sorry about the other night. I shouldn't have snapped at you, you were just trying to help me." I apologized sincerely.

Another bright smile lit up his rugged features, "Well I couldn't be happier that we're friends again because I have an old man at home who keeps yelling at me for scaring you away. My dad really misses you."

A comfortable silence fell between us and Emmett took it as an opportunity to look around my living room. I smiled sadly when I noticed him looking at the pictures of my family from back when my family was happy, when it was my father, mother and me.

"Can I offer you something, Emmett?" I drew his attention from the pictures, "I think we have some chocolate cake."

He nodded eagerly and I couldn't help myself as I grabbed his teddy paw and led him to the kitchen.

"By the way, this counts as that dinner of yours, so you might as well turn on your McCarty charm and ask all those questions that I know you're _dying _to ask me." I told him whist cutting a slice of cake for him.

"This cannot be our date. I am totally unprepared!" he complained before childishly dipping his finger into the icing of the cake and sucking it off with a loud 'Smack.'

I leaned over the counter top, "Maybe if you make this date worthwhile I'll consider letting you take me out for dinner." Even I was shocked at how low and husky my voice had gotten.

Emmett being a pro and flirting arched his eyebrows, playfully challenging me; he too leaned over the counter so that our faces were mere centimeters apart.

"I might have been willing to accept your offer," his eyes dropped to my breasts, "if you where wearing a lower cut top. But since that t-shirt keeps you covered and I can still think straight I can assure you that this chocolate cake date isn't going to cut it."

He pulled back smiling smugly whilst I blushed bright red and looked down at my oversized grey sweatshirt in embarrassment.

"Hey," he nudged me on my chin softly so that I'd look at him, "I was kidding, you look great in anything, you know that." He assured me.

"Thanks."

He finished eating his cake in silence not uttering another word until I was washing the plate that he'd used.

"So, I'm just wondering… what questions am I allowed to ask? I have to know because the last time I was trying to get to know you, your evil twin almost bit my head off."

I threw him an apologetic look before promising him that I'd answer any questions that he had _nicely_. And with that, I led him over to the couch in the living room so that we could be more comfortable. We sat with reasonable distance between us and once we were comfortable the questioning began.

"Where's your mom?"

I flinched slightly unprepared for his question, "Umm… well she died when I was seven, before we moved here. She had cervical cancer."

"Wow." He sighed, "Mine might as well be dead, she's traipsing around America with her baseball player boyfriend and my little sister Bella. She's a lousy mom, she doesn't call much."

"You have a sister? I would have never guessed that, why doesn't she live with you?"

Emmett went on to explain that Bella's father was a different man from his dad and that despite his dad's protests his mom chose to keep Bella when his parents split up. And that she was ruining Bella's life with her ever changing boyfriends and homes.

I wanted to show him that I too could relate to having a lousy family.

"I hate my dad." I offered, shrugging. "And not in that meaningless way that those kids on TV use the word, I mean _I really_ hate him."

"That's kinda harsh, don't you think? I'm sure he doesn't hate you." He reasoned, squeezing my hand reassuringly.

"Does it matter whether or not he hates me? He's an idiot and I cannot wait to leave for university."

"I think that's how my sister feels about our mom." He was thoughtful for a moment, "I'll tell you exactly what I tell Bella… at least he feeds you." He smiled.

I chuckled and he continued, "I don't know what it is about you but, I swear you're making me think and feel things I never did before. And for some reason I get this feeling that if anything does happen between us that we have to keep it really slow."

I swallowed nervously, "That's true, I can't even begin to explain to you why it has to be that way but it does. But hey… slow and steady wins the race, right?"

"It sure does." He slowly brought my hand up to his mouth and kissed it tenderly.

_**Emmett's Point of View**_

A couple of hours had passed which Rosalie and I had occupied watching a variety of sitcoms.

Once we'd had our fill of comedy, and she switched the TV off he turned to me, "Does your dad know about what happened with Mike at the party?"

She smiled sadly, probably regretting that I brought up the party after all of the fun we were having.

"He knows that something happened but he doesn't know what."

I kissed her hand, "I don't know Rose… I think you should tell him. Maybe he could talk to Mike's parents… I mean that kid is like a rapist in the making. Somebody needs to stop him."

She looked at me doubtfully, "I really don't think he's going to try anything like that again after what you did."

I gave her a _yeah right_ look.

"I can't tell my dad Emmett… everyone will know what happened and they won't care. Mike is Forks' golden boy. People already hate me enough as it is… I don't want to make it any worse."

"So you're just willing to let some other girl experience what almost happened to you?" he shook his head disdainfully, "I can't believe that you of all people would say something like this."

I realized that it seemed like if I was being a bit tough on Rosalie, but that was only because I was trying to guarantee her future safety. I may have been a player and I may have used many girls' bodies for my own selfish beliefs, but I was a firm believer that forced sex as absolutely off limits.

Rose sighed loudly, blinking back a few tears, "Fine I'll tell him." She looked around the room before continuing, "Maybe it's time you left."

"Rose I – " she stopped me by resting her hand in mine and lacing our fingers together.

"I'm not mad, I promise." She smiled, "I just need some space and some time to think. I promise I'll come over tomorrow."

Once she'd said that all I could do was grab my teddy bear paws and step out of the house and into the pouring rain. I hoped that I'd really see her tomorrow and that she'd take my advice and talk to her dad. I just hope that I didn't push her too hard and overstepped the fragile border of our friendship.

_**A/N: Hey Guys here's the new chapter leave me some love if you liked it or constructive criticism if you didn't. I know it was a wee bit boring and hopefully there'll be a lot more excitement in the following chapters**_

_**Below are some links relating to the chapter**_

_**So Sorry – Feist **_http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=wfEPvebGGJM

_**Glenridding, UK, it's really nice I went here for vacation last year. It probably does rain more here than in Forks : **_http:/www(dot)asiarooms(dot)com/en/united_kingdom/glenridding/85314-inn_on_the_lake_lake_district_hotels_ltd(dot)html

_**The Lake District in the UK: **_http:/en(dot)wikipedia(dot)org/wiki/Lake_District

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